One of my earliest and most memorable Gospel shows was at Long Creek youth Correction Facility.  At the time it was named the Maine Youth Center, and I had to carry all my props up three flights of stairs to get to the chapel, set on the top floor of an ancient fire trip of a building.  At the time, the youth Center had a regular AWOL rate between 10 and 20 percent, as it was set up as a multibuilding campus.  That was 1987.

It has changed a lot since then. It is a single, locked facility in a beautiful, well lit new building.   I was there again recently to do their Saturday morning chapel program.  Their current chaplain, John, is the father of two of my former students, and himself an aspiring juggler.  He was eager to show me how well his four ball shower has progressed since the I was there in August.  He's definitely getting it!

John also filled me in on current events at Long Creek.  This would be the first chapel in a while that the guys and girls would be together.  They had to be separated in recent weeks for 'behavioral' reasons. One week an entire unit of guys had to be removed in the middle of a service; Yikes! He also told me that there are currently only 50 kids doing time there, as more and more non violent offenders are going to either group homes or psych units.  We hoped for 20 - 25 kids to come out.  We got 35!

And the kids were completely appropriate throughout the show.  In fact, when I went into my last routine, an illusion telling the story of the repentant thief on the cross, you could hear a pin drop.  As I followed that up with a prayer about God's grace and mercy, you could hear several of the teens sniffing back tears. 

 It's great when you know you've connected with the congregation, no matter what type of church it is.